Monday, January 15, 2007

Preparing to do the Oscars Again, and Other Matters of Interest

Well, Mortals, your Dragonmaster has to mentally and emotionally prepare himself for another session of torture, compliments of our wacky pals at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences. That's right, kids: It's Oscar Night in America --- and Blackwolf the Dragonmaster is there!

As before, armed with the resources of the Internet Movie Database, HollywoodReporter.com and other sources, your fearless leader will once more bring you, here in the ol' Diary of Magecraft, the most graphically detailed Oscar Nominations list anywhere. Contrary to the snooty opinions of certain others, there are one or two of you out there who DO give a damn about the lesser Oscar awards, and want to pay attention to them. Besides, there is simply no longer any reason to whine about the length of the telecast anymore, given that ours is a 500-channel Multiverse where Generation iPod is THE dominant species.

Laura Ziskin has quite a challenge on her hands as the live telecast's producer. Louis J. Horvitz will be manning the booth for his 11th straight go as telecast director, after winning 8 Emmy Award Nominations and 5 Emmys for his work on Oscar Night. Indeed, Louis has just finished directing this year's Emmy Awards telecast, as well as the recent Kennedy Center Honors. (By Merlin's beard, is there nothing this guy WON'T direct?!!) Anyway, we'll be ready on January 24th, the day after the Oscar Nominees are announced, to bring you that list. And strap yourselves in again, folks --- this WILL (again) be a long one!

Then, of course, there's Ellen. There are some who are saying that she, like Whoopi before her, won't make it. But this one has had award show hosting experience, having hosted 2 consecutive Primetime Emmy Awards telecasts, and co-hosted one of same. Now, she prepares to join the ranks of the great Oscar hosts(?) --- but I reserve judgment until the telecast per se.

As for those other matters of interest --- well, they'll be but an afterthought once we get down to the major issues of the blooming thing. Which is to say, as Indiana Jones of old once put it, "I dunno, I'm making this up as I go."

Mortals. Oscar Night 2007 will, as ever, be nuts. But ONE Wizard dares to break those nuts --- and Blackwolf the Dragonmaster is the chosen! Ride with me!